Miami Heart Institute Trades Owners, Awaits Resolution

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor
Holliday Fenoglio Fowler recently announced the successful sale of the Miami Heart Institute to Lionheart Capital after years of scouting for a potential buyer. No financial details have been disclosed, but seller Mount Sinai Medical Center [...]

Holliday Fenoglio Fowler recently announced the successful sale of the Miami Heart Institute to Lionheart Capital after years of scouting for a potential buyer. No financial details have been disclosed, but seller Mount Sinai Medical Center bought the property back in 2000 for nearly $75 million, while in 2011 the property had a market value of $68.19 million, according to the Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser.

The 666,798-square-foot facility is located at 4701 North Meridian Ave. in Miami Beach, less than one mile from the Mount Sinai Medical Center. Built in 1984, the property consists of a seven-story hospital building and two parking garages, while onsite amenities include a waterfront dining facility and a conference center with a 241-seat auditorium. Mount Sinai will now move its rehabilitation services—currently provided at the Miami Heart Institute building—to its main campus.

Lionheart has not released any immediate plans for the property, but previous projects have considered the possibility of a residential redevelopment. The plan faced some opposition from local residents, as the central location is home to a Miami Beach single-family home neighborhood. In 2008, Miami Beach residents approved a charter amendment that stated that if the site no longer functioned as a medical center, it would have to be rezoned to match the respective zoning of the neighborhood, meaning single-family homes, town homes and apartment buildings no higher than five stories.

Mount Sinai first started to market the property for sale in 2007, but according to The Real Deal Miami, it was not until October that an unnamed developer terminated a deal to purchase the Heart Institute. Yet soon after, the developer put out a release saying that the deal fell through due to an inability to obtain financing.

The HFF investment sales team representing Mount Sinai Heart Institute was led by executive managing director Manny de Zarraga and director Ike Ojala.